The Lion Guard
by Solaire-Guardian-of-Astora
Summary: Delric Hawksmith is a Breton Lionguard, a protector of the King. After a cataclysmic event, he finds himself taken captive by Imperials. After escaping, Delric finds all of Tamriel to be plunged into chaos as Molag Bal unleashes his Dark Anchors on Tamriel once more. Follow Delric in his adventures, as he travels through Tamriel on a quest to discover himself. Features my own OC's
1. Chapter 1

**Authors Note:**

This is in no way my views on the current KoH vs EoT war, or any subsequent wars. This is not my views on nords, or any other Elder Scroll race. The Elder Scrolls is owned by Bethesda studios. Names of characters belong to their original creators. I only own the main character, and a few other OCs. This is an entire work of fiction.

_**If you see spelling or grammar mistakes, or if things just don't make sense please contact me. **_

**Chapter 1: Ebonheart **

Rain landed softly on Delric's cape. The rhythmic pitter patter used to calm him when he was a child, looking outside his parent's house in Shornhelm, an area prone to deep rain. He gripped his sword, a steel blade that was long enough to be used for offense as well as defense, but was short enough for it to be held in one hand. He twisted the sword in his hands, admiring the Breton craftsmanship as he heard the screams of war. Rolling his shoulder in anticipation, Delric looked to his side as he marched along with some of the remaining High Rock forces.

The battle had been going on for hours at this point and the assault on the Imperial stronghold was just about lost. High Rock had lost most of it's troops in the first wave, proving no match for the Nordic and Imperial forces working together, slaughtering the High Rock and Hammerfell legions before they even had a chance to put up a fight. Those who had survived the first wave rallied together and attacked again, resulting in the same lost. Now the survivors began to rally again, at the entrance of the fort in attempts to breach the Imperials and Nords and make landfall within the stronghold, where they would have better luck fighting in the tight corners. Delric sheathed his sword, and continued to march, stepping over bodies of Bretons, Nords, Redguards, and Imperials a like. The battle had been bloody, and both sides had lost a lot of men in the first and second wave. Arrows from the Imperials who had been perched on the battlements littered the ground. Swords, axes, and maces laid in the mud, their owners next to them, lying still. Delric was not used to war, his face contorted as he stepped over a mangled arm, his position did not throw him into the face of death often.

He was a Lion Guard, a protector of the king. Most times, this simply meant that he had to follow the king to multiple political events, fend off a few angered Khajiits, and maybe a lusty Argonian. Very rarely did Delric have to get his sword bloodied. However times had changed. The Imperials had begun taking over Skyrim, killing the previous king and emplacing their own. Since then, the Empire had begun expanding its influence, taking over Morrowind and Black Marsh, both nations providing small uprisings that were extinguished just as fast as they started. From there the Empire marched, edging into the sovereign nation of Hammerfell, home to the Redguards. However Hammerfell did not bend over like the other nations. Lead by King Cyrus and Prince A'tor, the Redguards retaliated. They attacked the Imperials, driving them out of Hammerfell and chased them into Cyrodiil. Battles were exchanged, and soon a full blown war erupted, with Hammerfell attacking Imperial strongholds all over Tamriel, including Skyrim outposts and Black Marsh forts. Rebellions began, and with the support of Hammerfell they grew stronger. The Empire was beginning to fall, and with that desperation began to mount. The empire refused to lose it grip, and using their powerful fleets they began to blockade coastal nations such as Summerset and High Rock, forcing these nations to go into a famine.

Months later, any ship that was seen out in the waters by Imperial ships were attacked, no matter the nation. High Rock was forced to get most of its imports out of Hammerfell only, causing widespread famine as Hammerfell was not able to provide enough food for the whole province. Soon, the Empire began to invade High Rock, entering in from the Skyrim border. This forced King Vincent to act, mobilizing the High Rock army in efforts to fend off the Empire. Now allied with High Rock, Hammerfell continued it's war with renewed vigor, attacking key Imperial positions and strongholds, forcing them to retreat back into Cyrodiil. All these key moments now lead up to now, the invasion of Ebonheart, one of the Empires biggest strongholds outside of Cyrodiil.

Shouts brought Delric's attention back from his wandering. He looked around to see that men were starting to run backwards, towards the ships that had delivered the raiding party to shore. Confused Delric began to move forward, brushing the running men aside as he continued to move and see what in Akatosh's name was occurring. As he got closer to the front of the battalion, his eyes narrowed. In front of him was a wall of Imperials and Nords. The Imperials stood back, knotting arrows and firing on the crowd as Bretons and Redguards engaged in tense sword fighting with the Nords. Looking up to the sky and praying to multiple Divines, Delric unsheathed his sword and turned towards the running Bretons, grabbing a young man by the arm. The Breton turned around, his helmet barely fitting on his head as his hands shook in fear.

"Listen to me" Delric told the boy, as he took the boy's sword and placed it in the Bretons shaking hands.

"Your family needs you. Your province needs you" Delric told the boy, trying to raise his voice above the shouting of the war around them. Delric raised his sword and turned towards the battle. Even though Delric was never a front line soldier, this battle was for the liberation of High Rock. He refused to stand back and let the Empire walk over him.

"FOR THE PROVINCE" He yelled, turning to the boy and signaling him to follow. They both jumped from the small elevated hill they were on, landing right into the middle of the fray. Delric gripped his sword with two hands, moving calmly towards the entrance of Ebonheart, swinging only when necessary. Although he had never seen war, he was a very skilled sword fighter and spell caster. He had trained with some of the best spell swords in Tamriel, learning proper footing and hand placement, along with other techniques.

As he remembered his training, A nordic man raced up to him, war axe raised and spittle flying from his mouth. Delric, not intimidated by the Nords brutish fighting style, raised his sword and bended his knees, anticipating the incoming strike. The brute brought his axe down on the Hawksmith, however the nimble Breton side stepped the swing and then spun back around to face the Nord as he tumbled into the bloodied ground. Delric, not allowing his opponent to get back up, raised his sword and brought it down on the Nords neck, cutting off the airflow and effectively slicing through his trachea. He then ripped his sword out of the Nords neck, wiping the blood on the back of the dead Nord and then sheathing the sword again. The whole encounter took only a few seconds, his efficiency surprising even him.

After another 15 minutes of fighting, Delrich had made it to the entrance of Ebonheart. Grabbing a shield that had belonged to a long dead nord, He hoisted it in front of him. He and a few other Hammerfell and High Rock troops had situated themselves in a trench merely a few miles from the entrance to the Imperial Stronghold. They had positioned multiple shields and other debris on top of each other, preventing the continued barrage of arrows from penetrating them. Delric looked around, noticing most of the men before him were fairly young, most of them farmers who had been conscripted into their countries army. This was probably the first time they had seen war, the first time they had seen men die in front of them. Some of them looked frightened, others angered, and a few with no emotion at all.

"So, you've made it this far" Delric started, as he looked to every single man in the trench with him. There were about only 15 men , not enough to charge and take the stronghold, however he wasn't about to be taken captive by the imperials and then executed in Cyrodiil. He was going to die an honorable death, buried with his fellow brothers. Gripping his sword, and grabbing the handle of his shield Delric began to stand out of the trench.

"Today, we fight for our Brothers, our sisters, our Mothers, and our Fathers" Delric shouted as he looked at the Imperial stronghold. He noticed as archers began to knot their arrows, but did not fire upon him

"Today we fight, for the children that have died with no food for them to eat. Today we fight for our independance!" Delric shouted, turning back to the 15 young men, as they all started to stand up, gaining their own courage.

"Today, we fight, not for honor, not for pleasure. Today we fight to be Free!" Delric shouted, bringing his sword up as he jumped out of trench, holding his shield over his head as he charged the gates. The other men quickly followed suit, yelling their own chants as they too jumped out of the trenches and towards the entrance. The imperials began to rain down their arrows, but the shields provided ample cover as the small battalion quickly closed the gap between them and Ebonheart.

Delric's heart raced. He was the leading the charge against the fortress, arrows whizzed by him, impaling the ground and sending up dirt next him. He could see the entrance now, the gates were opened, with multiple Imperial archers positioned right outside with their arrows knotted about to fire. Delric kept running, holding out his shield in front of him, anticipating the arrow barrage. Then suddenly, Delric felt the ground give way as a large shockwave hit him, throwing him back a few feet. Now on his back he looked up to see a large chain protruding from Ebonheart and leading back into the sky. The entire stronghold had been thrown into a craze. fires burned as Imperials and Bretons alike ran from the fortress, looks of terror on their faces. Delric struggled to get up, but fell back down as he felt a sharp pain near his ribcage. Mustering up enough strength, he pushed himself into a sitting position. He watched as a purple large circular object descended out of the heavens, creating a portal in the sky, lightning sparking all around the foreign object. Out of the portal fell winged demons and knights in darkened armor, holding swords with red tints. The knights and demons fell into the fortress, slaughtering the Imperial soldiers like butter, the their arrows and steel doing nothing but to taunt the demons.

Delric had never seen such a monstrosity before. He recounted the sudden event in detail, a large "anchor" had appeared above the fortress, killing most of the men inside. Out of that anchor spawned multiple demons, slaughtering the remaining soldiers. Not even in the stories elders told children did they come close to what Delric was witnessing with his own eyes.

"You there! Can you walk?" Surprised, Delric turned around to see a Redguard,his curved sword on his hip as he ran over to him. Placing his hand on Delric's shoulder, he looked him up and down.

"You're not a Nord or an Imperial, and by your garbs you don't seem to be an Imperial sympathiser." The Redguard said. Delric noticed that the Redguard seemed to have been in his middle age, scars covered the Redguards brownish face.

"The name's Delric" He claimed as he attempted to stand yet again, but yelped in pain instead.

"Nice to meet you Delric. Name's Akorithi, Prince of Hammerfell" The Redguard stated, removing a vial from his pouch. Twisting the top of the vial, he handed it to the Breton, nodding for him to drink it. Delric took the vial, gingerly smelling the top before drinking it's contents. Gagging, Delric looked up to Akorithi with a sickening look, until he felt the pain from his ribs subside. Now fully healed, Akorithi offered him his gloved hand, which Delric took with great him up, they both looked at the large Anchor in the sky, as more nightmarish creatures, worse than the next continued to pour out of it

"And here I thought, I was going to die a boring death surrounded by Redguard woman" Akorithi sighed, removing his curved sword from his belt. Chuckling, Delric followed the Redguard into the tree line behind them, heading back towards the way they came.


	2. Chapter 2

**Authors Note:**

**Hey, thanks for reading! This is one of my first fan fictions, and I plan on writing it as a trilogy. Please leave a review, as it would really help me improve my writing skill.**

Delric plunged his sword through the chest of the Darkened beast, the Breton steel going straight through it's chest cavity. The monster gave a muffled screech, grabbing Delric by the throat with it's clawed hand. Gasping for air Delric kneed the beast in the chest, however the monstrosity did not relent, tightening it's grip around his throat. An arrow whizzed by Delric's head, plunging itself into the skull of the demon. The sudden event caused the demon to loosen it's grip on Delric's throat, reaching for it's damaged eye in reflex. Using this new advantage Delric ripped the sword out of the Demon's chest and severed it's arm. Gasping for air and feeling his neck, he took a step back, planting his feet down firm and getting into a position to engage the Demon again.

"These things are hard to kill" Delric yelled out, as the beast also got into an attack position, pointing it's sword straight at him.

"These 'things' are Daedra my boy. Spawns from the plains of oblivion" Akorithi, the Redguard Prince yelled. The Redguard stood a bit behind Delric, using a stolen imperial bow to take down Daedra from afar while Delric fought them up close. Delric turned back to the Daedra as it began to charge at him, wielding it's sword in a fairly barbaric manner. The Daedra quickly shorten the distance between it and Delric, bringing it's sword down directly over him. Delric rolled to the left, leaving it's large blade in the grass where he had just previously been. Scrambling back to his feet, Delric spun to face the Demon as it attempted to pull it's sword out of the ground. Taking the opportunity, he performed his own charge on the Daedra, severing it's other arm, and then slicing it's head off. The now headless Daedra fell to the ground, dissolving into purplish dust afterward. Hefting up the sword the beast left behind, Delric examined it, noticing the extremely brutish nature of the weapon.

"What in Akatosh's name do they want then? If they're from the plains of Oblivion?" Delric asked, looking at the Redguard as he sheathed his sword.

"No clue." Akorithi answered bluntly, slinging his bow onto his back. "We should get going, for all we know the Hammerfell fleets could have taken off without us" Dropping the sword on the ground, Delric gave the Redguard a quizzical look.

"Wait, are you not the commander of the Navy?" Delric asked. "Why would they leave their own General behind?"

"And why would the King leave his own Lion Guard behind?" The Redguard replied, silencing Breton as the began walking towards what they believed to be the coast of the Stronghold.

After a bit of walking, the two were nearing the shore when they heard shouts. I unsheathing his sword, Delric turned to see a couple of Imperials running towards them, swords unsheathed and waving.

"Lay down your arms!" one of the imperials shouted.

"Oh for the love of Stendarr, don't these idiots see the giant portal in the sky?" Delric asked, holding his sword out. Although His sword had been dented due to fighting the previous Daedra, it was still sharp enough to cut Imperial armor. Spreading his feet out, Delric prepared to strike down those who came a bit too close.

"No way in hell I'm being taken back to Cyrodiil" Akorithi agreed, unslinging his bow and knotting it, preparing to fire a barrage on the imperials while Delric dealt with them upfront. Hearing a slight rustle in the leaves behind him, Delric turned his head a bit to see a glint of silver behind him. Before he could do anything, he felt a sword brush against the back of his throat.

"I'd suggest you drop those" A female voice behind them said. Gripping his sword, but now staring straight ahead towards the Imperials Delric asked

"And what would happen if we don't?"

"Well, then you get shot by about 12 archers behind me, assuming I don't cleave your head off" She said, her voice fairly nonchalant in the threat.

Looking to his side, he noticed that Akorithi had dropped his bow. Having no other choice, Delric followed his lead, sheathing his sword, and unbuckling his belt. The belt fell to the ground, his potions and knives clattering to the ground along with it. He continued to look forward, as his arms became bounded chained together with cuffs, as the other Imperials from before finally caught up.

"Thanks Legate, we needed the help back there" The Imperial leading the group said, sheathing his own sword.

"Well of course I had to, you idiots would've been castrated if I had not." The female Legate claimed, stepping out from the shadows behind Delric and Akorithi, sheathing her sword onto her hip.

As she walked in front of the two prisoners, Delric was able to discern that the Legate was indeed a female. She was tall in stature, and was fairly muscular for a female. Her hair was of a golden color, placed in a knotted bun behind her head. The color easily distinguished her as the mixed child of both a Nord and Imperial, not a surprising sight due to the mass amounts of imperials being placed into Skyrim during the coup d'etat of the provinces previous King. The Legate had a scar going across her chin, although not necessarily deep, it showed that she had been in many battles before. On her side was the sword that she had sheathed before, an Imperial sword known as a Gladius. It was maneuvered typically with one hand, as many short swords would, however strangely she had multiple strings attached to the handle of her sword, each one a different shade of green.

"Now, if you idiots have done enough staring" She said as she tightened and checked the bounds on both Delric's and Akorithi's cuffs "Load these two men onto the ship, and do not delay". The imperial soldiers, after sheathing their swords walked up to both Delric and Akorithi, grabbing them by the arms and hoisting them up from their kneeled positions. The Imperial that had grabbed Delric had been the one who had initially yelled at them before. He was a short man, shorter than Delric, who was of an average height for a Breton. The Imperial was also very skinny, and lacked any if all muscle, making him look more like a Nordic druager than an Imperial soldier. Delric knew that he could most likely take this Imperial out in mere seconds, but what worried him was the 3 other imperials walking next to Akorithi and him. They would be sure to strike them both down, making the escape effort thoughts of escape were suddenly interrupted when he heard a large roar, that sounded to belong to some type of large creature. He looked up as the other Imperial soldiers unsheathed their weapons.

"What in the hell was that?" The Imperial next to Delric said, his eyes nearly popping out of his skull

"It was nothing, keep moving to the ship" The Legate ordered, as she motioned for two archers to go back and check out the bizarre sound. The archers nodded, unslinging their bows and moving back towards the blood curdling sound. Most of the imperials began to continue moving, however Akorithi had stopped dead in his tracks, his head low as he began participating in some sort of prayer. The legate opened her mouth, about to issue an order when the ground below them opened upwards, sending everyone flying backwards. Landing roughly on his back, Delric rolled to the right, shielding his face with his cuffed hands as dirt landed on top of him. Putting his hands down, the Breton looked up in shock as a large winged demon flew over head. The beast had the look of a dragon, however it sported four wings instead of the average two. It's body was of a humanoid origin, having two stalwart legs, and two arms that were of a dark gray scale nature. The beast landed, roaring as it did. Suddenly, it lunged at one of the imperials on the ground, grabbing him in it's hand the beast let out a roar. In doing so, the Imperial man screamed, his gladius dropping from his hands, and landing a down on the mud coated ground. The beast let out another roar, crushing the Imperial. The action instantly killing him, as blood seeped down to the ground like water from the beasts hands. Disturbed, Delric attempted to get up from his position, refusing to die in this nightmare. Praying to each divine, He began sprinting away from his previous location, jumping over bodies of the damned.

Screams filled Delric's ears and mind as he ran through the forest, their cries quickly being cut with each roar that accompanied them. As the minutes passed, the screams decreased, as men were ripped apart by the flying Daedra. Praying for the poor souls, Delric continued to run, beads of sweat flowing down from his face as he exerted himself to his limit. His vision began to falter, as he felt himself give up inside. Tripping over a branch, he placed his cuffed hands in front of him, forcing them to take the brunt of his fall. Now coated in mud, he attempted to get up when he heard the same loud roar that would later begin to haunt his nightmares. Still in fear, he slowly cocked his head up to see the that same Daedra who had ripped countless men apart, had landed in front of him, however it's back was faced towards him. Thanking Akatosh for his new found luck, he slowly brought himself up. Looking in front of the Daedra, he could see that a woman was in front of the beast, her long hair golden. Looking closer, Delric was surprised to see that it was the Imperial Legate who had placed the cuffs on him.

The Imperial was now holding onto an imperial shield, holding it in a defensive manner on her front. In her other hand, she had her Gladius, now coated in blood. Standing in front of the Daedra, she did not give off the sense of feeling intimidated by the beast that towered over her. Her face was calm as she fixed the spacing of her feet. She positioned her shield at an angle to deflect any frontal blows, and then taunted the beast to attack, yelling a few explicits that Delric was too far away to hear. The Daedra, having fallen for these taunts, lunged, swinging it's clawed hands towards the Imperial. However she was quick on her feet, rolling to the left and avoiding the attack. The Legate got back on her feet, hefted her shield up and charged at the Daedra, taking a few swipes at the beast as she jumped onto it's arm and began running up straight for it's head. The Daedra, now noticing the danger it was in, quickly made a swinging motion with it's arm, causing the Imperial to lose her footing. Plunging her sword into the Daedra's arm, her shield flew from her hand and she grabbed hold to her Gladius for dear life.

Cursing, Delric looked at his cuffed hands. He would be no use dead, however if he could just break his chains, he could cast some sort of spell to turn the battle. Looking around, his eyes fell on a large boulder, that with enough effort would be able to break his chains. Running up to it, he noticed a pair of red glowing eyes out in the wilderness. Ignoring them, he began to bang his chains against the boulder, praying to every divine he knew for his cuffs to break. Looking back, he saw that the Imperial had dislodged her sword, and was now on the ground, rolling out of the way from as the Demon slammed it's fist on the ground, sending a shockwave that even Delric felt. He watched as she rolled behind the Daedra, shoving her sword into it's back. The Daedra thrashed, wiping it's fists at the ground as it began to beat all of it's wings. The Imperial, now without a sword or shield, dashed out of the way, and continued running as the beast turned towards her, it's eyes filled with rage. To His surprise, he noticed that the Imperial was running towards him, her sword still no where to be seen. Delric stopped his his futile attempt at breaking his chains as the Imperial came to a brisk jog in front of him, grabbing his arm and ushering him to run with her. Reluctantly obeying, he ran behind her, his breaths coming in short gasps, only to quicken in pace as he heard the loud roar of the Daedra behind him. Looking back, he noticed that the beast was tearing the forest apart, inspecting the beast further, he observed that one of it's wings had a large gash. Looking back to the Imperial, he noticed that she was holding a match in one hand, and a sad attempt at a fire spell in the other.

"Concentrate" Delric yelled, as he attempted to run next to her, raising his chained hand to protect his face as a large branch crashed down next to them.

"And what do you think I'm doing? Twiddling my thumbs!?" She yelled back, continuing to attempt a fire spell, but having it sputter and then die at each go.

"Just…just clear your mind of everything and everyone, let it the flame flow through you" Delric replied, looking behind them to see that the Daedra was closing in on them, it's mouth opened as it prepared to lunge and eat them both in one go. Shaking his head, he looked back to the Imperial to see that she had closed her eyes, and was starting to slow down. Cursing, he began to slow down as well, hoping with every ounce in his body that Daedra didn't like the taste of Breton.

"I… I've got it!" The Legate cried, as a ball of fire appeared in her hand.

"Great… So uhm, how is that going to help us in this situation?" Delric asked as the Daedra was practically on top of them, uprooting trees as it closed the short distance.

"You may want to get back.." The Legate said, casting the torrent of flames on the ground in front of them. The foliage caught fire, and soon after he could hear the shattering of glass and explosions.

"Run." The Imperial yelled, turning around as the whole area began to explode in flames. Delric followed suit, jumping over a log and running after her.

"What in Akatosh's name was that?" Delric yelled, his heart beating at nearly unhealthy measures.

"Just some of Ebonheart's other defenses" She called out, slowing her pace and looking back. Gasping for air, Delric slowed himself as well, turning back around to see that the majority of the area they were just in was engulfed in flames. The beast was nowhere to be seen, and Delric hoped it stayed like that. Turning back to the Legate, catching a look at her. Her golden hair was slightly burnt, and had a new scar across her face.

"So… think we can finally get off this god forsaken Stronghold?" Delric asked, turning around to see the coastline along with multiple Imperial ships.

"I guess you could say that" The Legate said, grabbing his shoulder and leading him onto the shore, calling to a few Imperials as she did.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: The Carcere**

"Was that the first time you've ever used a spell?" Delric asked as both he and the Legate walked across the shore with his hands still in shackles. He kicked a pebble across the sand, and watched as it rolled off into the distance

"I've casted quite a few" The Legate muttered, a stoic expression engulfed her face. She held Delric's arm firmly with her left hand, while her other gripped her imperial Gladius. She continually turned her head back towards the forest they had just escaped from, her eyes giving off the tell tale signs of continued paranoia. Delric stared at her quizzically, as she again turned back for perhaps the five hundredth time, her eyes again casting a long glance into the forest. Suddenly Her expression dampened slightly, however immediately returned to it's stoic expression as she stared forever forward. Shaking his head, Delric opened his mouth to tease the woman on her lies about casting spells when he noticed an Imperial man walk briskly towards them, his hands behind his back, and his head held high. He turned towards the legate to noticed that her stance had changed. Her arms had moved to her side, and her head bowed slightly.

"General Servius." She said, bowing her head as he approached. The General completely ignored the Legate's courtesy, and instead kept his hands behind his back.

"Legate, report. Why has no one from Ebonheart sent word in the past five hours?" The Imperial General asked. The Legate shifted her weight a bit, clearly uncomfortable in that answer she was about to give.

"Ebonheart no longer stands, General. Daedra have reduced it to only rubble, the few that survived the initial attack were later killed." She looked towards Delric. "Only I and this prisoner remain after the attack." Delric looked at the General's face, looking for any hint of his reaction. To his surprise, the General looked completely unfazed at the news.

"That is fairly unfortunate. However forts fall eventually, even Imperial ones. " The General stated matter of factly, raising his hands to caress his mustache. Delric looked in complete shock at the General's uncaring for what occurred at the Stronghold. Taking a look at the Legate, he could tell she was equally as amazed.

"Are you not going to question the Daedra attacking Ebonheart?" The Legate ask, her voice beginning to raise in pitch.

"You're obviously delirious the last time Daedra have openly attacked Tamriel was when a Daedric Prince attacked the Imperial City, and I don't see any flying Dragons around here. " The General said, spreading his legs a bit as he kept his hands at ease behind him. Delric could not believe what he was hearing, he began to open his mouth when the Legate let go of his arm. Surprised by the sudden action, he turned to the Legate to notice that her hand was shaking over her sword.

"I am not delirious. Far from it, sir." She said, a tad bit of venom in her voice. "I saw men and women die around me by beasts who have spawned from the deepest pits of Oblivion, and here you have the audacity to tell me it was simply a dream? Some kind of Nightmare?!" The Legate accused, her voice nearing a shout.

"So you wish to raise your voice? Along with attempting to threaten me? Perhaps you will learn not to be so belligerent as an Imperial Watch on the borders of Elsweyr." The General countered, his voice calm but cold. The Legate's face was washed with anger and rage, her hands having fully gripped the hilt of her sword. Delric watched as he expected the Legate to completely sever the head of this arrogant Imperial, but to his surprise she relented. Sighing, she grabbed the Breton's arm, and began guiding him to one of the many Imperial ships. Once they were out of earshot, Delric looked up to the Legate, seeing that her face now lacked the stoic expression she had before. Instead it was replaced with a look at was lost on Delric. 'Is it pain? Regret perhaps?' he wondered to himself.

"The Carcere, it's a nice ship." She muttered, her voice low. Her sudden communication quickly made Delric become aware again to the present.

"This one?" He pointed to the long ship that they were walking towards. It was of obvious Imperial make, with strong Colovian wood making up most of the deck. Upon the sails was the flag of the empire, flapping graciously in the slight breeze. However the female Imperial had declined to answer his question, instead she simply lead to a ramp that would take him up to the _Carcere_. Hanging his head low, and shuffling his feet across the sandy shore, Delric boarded the ramp.

The cell he had been given was immensely small, and smelled of waste. The area had been made completely out of a dark wood, as was the rest of the ship. The only non wood portion of his cell was the bars that locked him inside, those being made of a dark silver, commonly seen in Imperial constructs. He had been denied a bed, and instead was rewarded only a pile of hay, without a blanket to cover himself. Next to said hay pile was a small bucket, not even big enough to fit a child mudcrab. Delric sincerely hoped that bucket was for food, and not for his excrements, however he could not find another other suitable bucket in his cell, making him feel that it was indeed for the latter activity. Sighing, He sat down on the hay pile, looking around his cell and shaking his head. During his time as a Lion Guard he had found himself in fairly luxurious spacings, from the exquisite balconies of a castle in Hammerfell, to admiring the beautiful nights of Elsweyr. His new position was of a stark contrast to what he was used to, however it did not bother him too much. The change that haunted him more so was being on the front lines of battle. He had never watched so many men and women die before him in his life. Lowering his head on the haypile, he began to close his eyes, as the faces of the dead and those he had to leave behind haunted him.

Delric awoke to the sound of a muffled screams. Waking up, he instincivly grabbed at his side, cursing as he remembered he no longer had his trusty sword with him. Picking himself up quietly, he began to conjure a ball of flames in his right hand. He walked over to the bars the kept him inside his cell, and peered into the darkness. Although he couldn't see fairly well in the dark climate around him, he was able to see what looked like the body of the Imperial guard stationed to guard him sprawled across the floor. His hands shaking, he turned his gaze upwards, only for his mouth to become slightly ajar in shock. In front of him him stood the Imperial Legate he had traveled through the forest with only a few hours ago. Her golden hair was now in a long braid that hung on her shoulder. Instead of Imperial armor, she now wore plain brown leather, with a sliver pauldron on her sword arm. As Delric continued to look at her in his confused state, the former Legate walked up to his cell door quickly, holding a set of keys.

"Can you fight?" She asked, unlocking the door and pushing it open. With the door now open, she turned back towards the Imperial Auxiliary and began looting his person, removing a bag and dagger from his body. Delric, having now gotten over his confusion, walked out of his cell with his hands kept behind his back, the flames from before still burning in his right palm.

"Why are you helping me?" He asked, ignoring the previous question.

"Because the Empire refuses to acknowledge what I… what _we_ saw." She said, placing a dagger in his hands.

"So you're just going to do what? Walk off the ship? I don't think your general is going to let you do that."

"Exactly. That's why you're going to help me. There's a small row boat on the upper left side. We'll commandeer it and get off the Carcere." She stated, dragging the Imperial Watchman into Delric's cell, locking the door as she exited it.

"Is he…?" Delric asked, pointing towards the guard.

"He's knocked out. Didn't know you had compassion for those who imprisoned you?" She mockingly replied, unsheathing her sword and heading towards the ladder. Taking another glancing look at the man, Delric turned back to the woman.

"And I didn't know you had a sense of humor" He muttered as he followed after her.

Delric plunged his dagger into the neck of the Imperial he had been fighting against, the Colovian silver easily penetrating the skin and successfully creating a well sized gash in the man's throat. He then removed the dagger with quick pull, causing the Imperial guard to fall to the ground lifeless. Wiping the blood on his ragged and dirtied pants, the Breton sheathed his dagger into his pocket and walked over to where the Legate was standing. Her Gladius was deep inside the belly of another Imperial watchman who had been guarding the entrance to the jail cell area, the poor guard's face was contorted in a look of pure horror as she removed the blade from the young man's stomach. Standing next to the Imperial woman, Delric nodded at how she had swiftly dispatched the guard, with the fact of her being an imperial female. He would of expected a woman of the snows of Skyrim to have easily been able to kill people in the way the legate did, however he was more so skeptical for other races, especially the ditzy imperials. The Legate's glances towards him however, had broken Delric's from his train of thought.

"Perhaps you could wander around my body with your eyes, after we get off the Imperial prison ship?"

"Wha- what?" Delric stuttered, honestly surprised that the Legate had thought _he_ had been sizing up _her_ body.

"You heard me. Now come, the rafts aren't far off." She said, breaking into a brisk jog. Sighing and shaking his head at the previous conversation topic, Delric jogged after her, keeping his dagger brandished just incase anymore guards appeared.

It had taken them longer than expected to reach the escape rafts, as the boats where located at the very tip of the Carcere. Wiping a few beads of sweat off his brow, Delric began to regain his composure as the two of them walked up to one of the small boats anchored onto the side of the ship. The boats where very small in size, and where crafted from the same dark colovian wood that the Carcere herself was made of. Delric placed his hand on the side of the small ship, feeling the smooth wood against his palms. As he turned back to say something to the Legate, an arrow whizzed by his head, lodging itself into the small craft behind him. Cursing, Delric turned towards the direction of which the arrow had come from, only to see multiple imperial archers had taken up a semi circle like position in front of them. In the middle of their semi circle stood General Servius, along with what appeared to be two Imperial Legates, one male, one female. Delric twisted his head to the side to see that the former Legate had brandished her sword and shield. Following suit, Delric twirled his knife in his right hand, as a ball of flames was summoned in his left. General Servius however, was not intimidated by the prisoner and his former legate. Instead he simply began to laugh, his roars echoing throughout the entire Carcere as his subordinates also let out tense chuckles.

"So Gilfre. This is what you do after a simple demotion to Praefect?" General Servius asked, wiping a tear from his eye as he calmed himself.

"A simple demotion? Do you really feel that I am so dense?" Gilfre questioned through clenched teeth. Delric looked at her, her face giving off a more so pained expression than an upset one.

"You were going to have me killed! Executed for not saving Ebonheart! I read your report to the Elder Council, in which you claimed that I openly allowed Hammerfell and High Rock to outright stomp in and murder the strong men and women that died at Ebonheart on that fateful day." Gilfre screamed, a tear falling down her cheek.

"I lost more friends and family than I could count." She muttered under her breath, her voice barely audible. As Gilfre recomposed herself, Delric turned back to stare Servius in the eye, wondering how a man could possibly be so sick. However, the General did not apologize, nor did he give a look of pity. Instead, he simply laughed.

"Oh dear girl… You truly must have bumped your head at Ebonheart." Servius said, his laughter winding down to a close. He then looked at Delric, his face dropping as he eyed the prisoner.

"Kill them." Servius stated as he turned his back and waved his hand. As he walked away, his legates filled in the gap his presence formally was in, both of them unsheathing their swords.

Time around him seemed to slow for Delric as he raised his hands, a protective ward spell erupting from his fingertips. In his right hand Delric had dropped his dagger, and instead flames engulfed his entire palm. Time continued to move like a first born child as Delric looked upwards, the arrows in the archers bows having yet to even leave their fingertips, the Colovian metal shining from the moonlight. Bringing his left hand in front of him, Time suddenly erupted into it's normal pace, as arrows collided with Delric's ward. However, He did not faultier. Holding his left hand out high, he slowly began walking forward as arrows bounced from his ward a kin to a barmaids hips. The archers stood, shocked by Delric's sudden use of magic, making the mistake of not reaching to their quivers. Using this slip up to his advantage, Delric raised his right hand and thrusted it forward, causing streams of orange fire to jumped from his fingertips and through the air, twisting and churning like a mad bat out of the pits of Oblivion. The stream quickly came in contact with some the archers, surprising them even more than the ward, and forcing them to scramble to the floor and attempt to remove their leathers. As Delric continued his burning onslaught on the idiot Archers who hadn't dove for cover, Gilfre was engaged in a tense sword fight with the two legates that had originally accompanied General Servius. She was forced to fight in a extremely defensive manner, as the two Legates hit her with barrage after barrage of sword swipes, in an attempt to get her off her balance. However, Gilfre had trained and sparred with these two particular Legates on multiple occasions. She ducked and dodged their attacks, while she performed what little counters she could. The male Legate, having gotten tired with her playing the defensive card, brashly brought his sword over his head and charged at her, hoping to catch her off guard somehow. However, instead of raising her sword, Gilfre raised her shield, and bashed it into the face of the male Legate. Stunned, the Imperial dropped his sword and reached for his nose, having completely disregarded the fact that he was inches away from death. Finally having been given the opening she was waiting for, Gilfre lashed out, he sword plunging into the man's chest, and then slicing upwards, effectively gutting him from the chest up. Swiveling on the heel of her foot, Gilfre turned and raised her shield just in time to deflect an attack from the female Legate, who's attacks had become more furious than before after losing her companion.

As Gilfre continued to fight the other Legate, Delric had since then been hiding behind a pile of crates, having been exhausted from his over use of magic. Peering his head over the crates, he saw that most of the Archers had dropped their bows, and where instead pacing towards his hiding spot with daggers and short swords, the metal still shining from it's lack of use. Turning his head back and resting it against the crate, Delric began to think of some way to get himself out of his predicament, when suddenly he felt himself sliding forward. Surprised, and a bit spooked, Delric began to move backwards when suddenly he felt the whole Carcere being tilt to the left. The crate he was hiding behind violently slid forward, and Delric slid along with it, his hands attempting to grasp for a handhold, but only reaching air. However, as soon as the tilting occurred, it stopped, and the ship returned to equilibrium. Slowing standing up, He looked around to see that everyone who had been fighting where now picking themselves off the floorboard as well. Looking to his left, Delric spotted an Imperial short sword next to one of the Archers who had yet to recover from his tumble. Acting fast, Delric quickly sprinted to the downed Imperial, kicking the man in the face and requisitioned his sword. The metal was unsurprisingly light, and was of a light gray silver, clear evidence of it's Imperial craftsmanship. Turning to where he had last saw Gilfre, he was instead granted the surprise of lizard like creatures boarding the Carcere from a ship that had pulled up alongside the Imperial Prison boat.

"Argonians!" One of the Imperial Archers cried, causing the rest of the Imperial's aboard the Carcere to look to the sudden invaders. However, Delric was more so occupied on getting to Gilfre and then escaping the ship. His eyes scanned the boat, catching sight of more Imperial's appearing from below deck to combat the sudden attackers. Finally, his eyes fell upon Gilfre, who was moving towards the safety raft with a knapsack in her hands. With a set goal insight, Delric began making his way towards the safety raft as well, his body hugging close to the edge of the ship in an attempt to not bring attention to himself.

"Looks like they could use some help." Gilfre muttered as she threw the knapsack into escape raft and began untying the knot that secured the small ship to the Carcere. Delric, who had just gotten over to the escape boat gave her a questionable glance.

"You feel remorse for them?"

"Is that even a question? Of course I do! The empire is my family. My home." She motioned Delric onto the boat as she got onboard herself, her hands still holding onto the rope to ensure they don't fall prematurely.

"But didn't you say that the empire wanted you dead? How could you still possibly consider them family?" Delric asked as he sat down within the boat, picking up the knapsack and taking a brief look inside. Meanwhile, Gilfre had let go of the rope that had holstered the ship to the Carcere, causing them to fall down into the navy blue ocean.

"That's because they where the only family I've ever known." She looked at Delric with a sad glint in her eyes. "What of your family? Did they not fight? Disagree?" Delric moved uncomfortably in his seat, suddenly he felt nervous around this woman. He could already feel a knot in his stomach from their close proximity.

"My family is dead. Has been for a while." Delric stated as he looked out to the ocean, finding a calming sensation in the darkness of the water.

"Oh… I'm..I'm sorry." Gilfre said frantically as she attempted to stammer out an apology. Delric gave her a sideways glance and then turned back to the sea.

"Let's just not talk about it."

**Authors Note:** God this chapter took so long like I can't even. I promise updates will never take nearly 3 months ever again.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Monsters

Yawning, Delric stretched his right arm as he looked at the morning sun. He watched as it rose above the waves and began its slow crawl towards its throne in the sky. Yawning intently again, he picked up the light brown knapsack next to him. The bag was made of a cow leather, and multiple holes where poked through the sack. Rummaging through the bag, he managed to remove a dusty green apple. Placing the knapsack back onto the ground, He took a large bite from the fruit and sunk down slightly into the boat as the juices swam within his mouth. Finished with his apple, Delric threw the small core into the ocean and began to sit back up straight.

"It's been hours and we still haven't found land yet." He muttered as he removed his dagger from his pocket and began picking at his nails with it. When Gilfre didn't reply, Delric looked up and saw that her body was turned away from him, facing towards the direction of the rising sun. It had only been five hours since the duo had hijacked their boat from the Imperial Prison ship known as the Carcere. Since then, Delric had not seen Gilfre sleep. Instead she had stared out into the ocean from the time he closed his eyes, to the time he had opened them. Remembering what she had said last night about the Empire being her family, Delric could only feel a slight twang of remorse for the woman. Her family pretty much wanted her dead and what was more amazing about it was the fact that it was over something out of her control. Moving slowly, in hopes of not disturbing the ship and causing it to capsize, Delric moved next to Gilfre and placed his hand on her shoulder. She flinched initially from the sudden personal contact, but quickly relaxed.

"I'll slice off your head and use your intestines as fishing lines if you ever get any ideas." She said bluntly, her eyes still focused on the morning sun. Delric laughed tensely as he removed his hand from her shoulder and looked towards the sun as well.

"I do appreciate the comfort however." He looked at her quizzically and then turned back.

"Do you wanna talk about it?"

"Maybe another time, when we know each other better." She said, a lock of her golden hair falling onto her face. Delric turned towards her, placing a hand on his lap.

"Then why don't we get to know each other now?" He asked. "I'll start. My name is Delric Hawksmith."

"Delric Hawksmith? Haven't I heard that name before…?" She asked, her face scrunched up in concentration. He watched as she tried to recollect her memories, the face causing him to utter a few chuckles.

"Huh? What is it?" She asked, looking at him with a confused look on her face, which caused Delric to laugh even more.

"You just look cute when you're confused." He said, covering his mouth in an attempt to stifle any more laughs. Gilfre's face turned a bright red at the accusation.

"How dare you! I am a warrior! Not some ditzy Breton girl from Daggerfall! I would like an ounce of respect from you!" She exclaimed, her voice rising slightly in pitch as she borderline yelled at Delric. He raised his hands in mock fear, laughing as he did so.

"Oh please don't hurt me! I am all but a fragile Breton! I stand no chance against an Imperial warrior such as you!" He said through a fistful of laughter. Gilfre punched him in the shoulder and turned her head away in embarrassment, her hair flowing in a sideways arc as she did so.

"Gilfre, come on I'm just joking around. No need to get flustered!" Delric said as he wiped a tear from his eye. She turned back around, punching Delric again as she did so. Delric winced a bit this time, as the punch hit a lot harder than the previous one. Satisfied that he looked to be in legitimate pain, she whipped her head back towards the horizon. After regaining his composure, Delric cleared his throat.

"So as I was saying, before you so rudely interrupted me, I am a Lion Guard. Protector of the King of High Rock, the land in which I lived most of my life in."

"Interesting. I suppose that is why your fighting style is so defensive?" Gilfre replied. Delric looked at her with a look of shock.

"My fighting style is certainly _not_ defensive." Delric countered. "It's a fighting style my father taught me when my brother and I were young."

"Your brother?"

"Yes my brother. His name was Vincent. We spent a lot of time together, along with our adopted brother Leo…"

"Wait, did you just say Vincent? As in Vincent Hawksmith?" Gilfre asked, her mouth nearly agaped.

"Yeah… So…?"

"Isn't Vincent Hawksmith the you know… King of High Rock? Or am I missing something here?" Gilfre inquired as her brow again became scrunched up in confusion.

"Well...I suppose he is. I just consider him more so my brother though you know?"

"Sure." Gilfre said dismissively as she feigned a small yawn. "So does that make you like the prince or something?" Delric scratched his head as he gave Gilfre a brief look.

"Uhm… No? That's not how monarchies work. Doesn't Cyrodiil have a king?"

"No. We have an Emperor, not some pretty little Princess" She replied jokingly

"First off, my brother is not a pretty little Princess… My god…" Delric began standing up in the boat and looked off into the distance. Gilfre also stood up next to him, her face contorted in a look of sheer shock. In front of them they saw the coasts of Morrowind, or what was left of it anyway. The entire coast seemed to be on fire, and although they were still a ways off from the coast, they could see large beings moving through the fire and flames.

"Is… Are those… Daedra?" Gilfre asked as she continued to stare at the burning monstrosity before them. Delric looked at her, he saw the flames of death glint off of her brown eyes.

"No… Those are monsters." He grabbed at the sail, directing it towards a part of the beach that seemed to be relatively clear. With the raft now heading directly towards the shores of Morrowind, Delric slowly sat down again and watched as he met Oblivion.


End file.
